Theatre Downtown opens Tennessee Williams' 'Tiger Tail'

Matthew J. Palm, Orlando Sentinel Arts Writer

Theatre Downtown revisits a world of tangled relationships in the 1950s Deep South when it opens "Tiger Tail" on Friday, June 7.

The drama was written by the great Tennessee Williams. Though "Tiger Tail" is not as well-known as the playwright's "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," "The Glass Menagerie" or "A Streetcar Named Desire," it appeals to Theatre Downtown artistic director Frank Hilgenberg.

"Part of what brings you back to any Tennessee Williams piece are the words," says Hilgenberg, who first staged the play at Theatre Downtown in 1992. "I think he's the most lyrical writer of all the American writers."

Williams' story started out as the one-act "27 Wagons," which was adapted into the 1956 film "Baby Doll" — roundly condemned by the National Legion of Decency. Williams then adopted the film into a full-length play — though at two hours, it still clocks in shorter than his best-known works.

Orlando actor Tim Bass had a minor role in Hilgenberg's 1992 staging. He's back for this production as leading man Archie, a middle-age cotton-gin owner married to much younger "Baby Doll." Her 20th birthday is right around the corner, and that's important: Because of her youth, Archie promised her daddy he wouldn't consummate the marriage until she turned 20.

Archie, however, is in a heap of trouble. He has burned down a rival cotton gin owned by a large syndicate. That cotton gin's owner, Silva Vacarro, sets out to seduce Baby Doll in hopes she'll spill the beans on her husband's arson.

Whew.

Bass says despite Archie's crimes and rough treatment of his young wife, he can't be seen as all bad.

"He's a product of his time and place," Bass says.

"Archie is not just evil," Hilgenberg agrees. "He's a man respected in his community who's just down on his luck."

Hilgenberg says he's eager to tackle the show again because perceptions change with time: "When you're rereading something after 15, 16, 17 years, you see things you didn't see before."

A key aspect of the play is the personality of Baby Doll, who will be played by University of Central Florida senior Brenna Warner.

"This Baby Doll has a lot more moxie than when we did it before," Hilgenberg says. "She's not just the victim. She's naïve about certain things, but she's incisive about other stuff."

"It shows she doesn't let everything get to her, that she's a strong person and can get through anything," she says.

The repugnant attitudes expressed by the Southern characters toward minorities still hit home, says Hilgenberg, who also presented "27 Wagons" at Theatre Downtown, in 2004 as part of a night of Williams' works.

"They seem antiquated, but people still have them," Hilgenberg says of the characters' prejudices. "There's still a lot of relevant stuff in the show."

Warner thinks that Baby Doll's yearning to improve her lot in life resonates with audiences today.

"She wants to get out of this house and do bigger and better things," she says. "It's very relatable."

'Tiger Tail'

• What: A Theatre Downtown production of the Tennessee Williams play

• Length: 2 hours

• Where: Theatre Downtown, 2113 N. Orange Ave., Orlando

• When: Opens June 7; 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. on two Sundays, June 16 and 23; through June 29